Six restaurants in the San Gabriel Valley were temporarily closed last week due to major public health hazards.

Between Jan. 14 and Jan. 20, those facilities had their health permits suspended for infestations of cockroaches, flies, a lack of hot water and operating without a health permit, according to a report from the Los Angeles County Public Health Department.

Restaurants and markets whose permits are suspended must close until another inspection determines the problems have been fixed. Closures can occur during routine and owner-initiated inspections, complaint investigations and reinspections.

The department did not provide details about the nature of the cockroach infestations — like the number of cockroaches and where in the facility they were found.

Stephanie K. Baer is a general assignment reporter covering the San Gabriel Valley. Baer has written about crime, local government, politics and public health. Her reporting on flaws in Los Angeles County's restaurant grading system prompted officials to change the way they issue health grades to retail food facilities. As part of a fellowship program at USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism's Center for Health Journalism, she wrote an in-depth series about the dangers of blue-green algae toxins in California. A Bay Area native and UC Berkeley graduate, Baer has worked for the Chicago Tribune and the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. She was editor-in-chief and president of her college newspaper, The Daily Californian.

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